Interview with Chris Connors, co-founder of candidate.fyi.
Everyone loves an origin story. What is candidate.fyi and why did you start it?
candidate.fyi is a candidate experience platform that helps companies streamline interview scheduling, automate communication, and turn their hiring process into a competitive advantage. We started it because we saw firsthand how broken and inefficient the candidate experience had become - missed emails, clunky coordination, no transparency. We knew there had to be a better way to make interviews run smoother for both candidates and recruiting teams.
What do you think candidate.fyi does differently from your competitors?
We didn’t build candidate.fyi as just a “scheduling tool” - we built it with deep empathy for how chaotic recruiting coordination can be. Our platform is designed to be incredibly easy for candidates and RC teams to use, fully synced with your ATS, and flexible enough to support the complex workflows most tools can’t. We also built the first AI scheduling agent specifically for recruiting teams - so you get speed without losing control or quality.
For RecOps folks, what are some key questions they should ask when evaluating candidate experience/scheduling tools?
Does it integrate seamlessly with our ATS and calendars?
How quickly can the tool adapt to last-minute changes or complex scheduling flows?
What’s the candidate-facing experience like - is it intuitive and mobile-friendly?
Can I automate communication and prep in a way that feels human, not robotic?
Will this save my RCs time and improve candidate satisfaction?
Imagine you are on the RecOps side of the fence. What arguments would you make for why you need a tool like candidate.fyi?
I’d say: if we care about delivering a great experience and scaling our hiring efficiently, we need to eliminate manual back-and-forths, automate prep and follow-ups, and get visibility into where candidate sentiment and engagement is. candidate.fyi does all of that - it protects your brand, reduces scheduling time by over 70%, and frees up your team to focus on high-impact work.
How do you think RecOps folks can help drive meaningful changes in your space?
RecOps folks are in a unique position to be the leaders of driving AI adoption in their organizations. They can keep recruiting teams ahead of the curve by staying up-to-date on the latest advancements in AI in Recruiting and test/advocate for new tools that can level-up hiring processes.
Why do you think there is such complexity in the candidate experience process?
Because no two interviews are alike. You’re dealing with dozens of variables - interviewer availability, time zones, panel conflicts, last-minute reschedules, and candidate expectations - often across multiple systems that don’t talk to each other. Without the right tooling, it becomes a game of calendar whack-a-mole.
What do you wish people knew about the candidate experience/scheduling process that isn’t obvious?
That it’s usually the first real impression a candidate has of your company’s internal operations - and it speaks volumes. A chaotic process signals disorganization. A streamlined, transparent one builds trust. RecOps teams should drive enablement around consistent workflows, clear comms, and post-interview feedback loops.
Who is your ideal customer?
Mid-market to enterprise companies that care deeply about their employer brand and are hiring at scale. These are often talent acquisition teams who are tired of manual scheduling, want better visibility, and need a system that can flex with their interview workflows.
What is your average customer size and industry? Are your customers more SMB, Mid-Market, or Enterprise focused?
Most of our customers fall in the mid-market to enterprise range, typically 1,000 to 10,000+ employees. We work across a range of industries - tech, retail, hospitality, consumer, healthcare - but the common thread is that they all value candidate experience and are looking to streamline high-volume coordination.
What tools can you integrate with (e.g. an ATS)?
Yes, we integrate with all the major ATS platforms (Greenhouse, iCIMS, Workday, Lever, UKG, etc.), as well as calendar tools like Google and Microsoft, Slack/Teams, and more. Integration is core to what we do - we want to sit on top of your stack, not force you to rip and replace.
Who are some voices that you follow in the space?
We love following folks who are pushing the space forward - Jeremy Lyons (RecOps Collective), Amy Wood, Andrew Lewis, Bonnie Dilber, and anyone advocating for better experiences over just automation. And of course, our own advisor Colin Day, the founder of iCIMS, continues to be a strong voice in how talent tech evolves.
TL; DR
What do you solve?
candidate.fyi solves for both scheduling and candidate experiences needs by providing a platform that easily integrates with a number of different ATS.
How do you do it?
By enabling practitioners with both AI and human ingenuity.